Missing Memories, and a Life Worth Saving
by Helen Nurse
Summary: Anna had left her adopted father's people over a decade ago to live a normal life in the small town of Aberporth. But when he appeared on in her flat one night, her world was thrown into chaos again. But in that chaos she finds an old, retired government official and his brother willing to help. (Mild JohnLock)
1. Chapter 1

It was a cold, dark night. When Anna entered her flat, she did not expect him there.

"Hello, Annapeth."

Anna pulled out her gun as she turned to face the intruder. She lowered it with a frown when she recognized him. "Hello, Father. How long has it been?"

"Over a decade since you ran from me." he walked over to her and removed he gun from her hand as she stood still, fearful of him.

"What do you want from me? You already destroyed my life once, Sir." She said through clenched teeth as he stroked her temple with the barrel of her revolver.

He whispered in her ear "I want you to sleep, dear. And when you wake up, you will have no memories at all. I will put you with people who will try to help you unlock your memories. And when that happens I will kill one of them." he giggled as he relished the idea of killing his enemy.

A tear rolled down Anna's cheek, because if she did not do as he told her she would be tortured before being forced to do what he wanted anyhow. She nodded her head in submission.

"You will go to London for a holiday, and one night while you are in your hotel room an old friend of mine will visit you. He wants you to struggle so it will be more realistic. I left you a billfold in your room with all the information you need, and I cleared your schedule for the next three weeks at work." he continued to whisper in her ear as he stroked the barrel of the gun over her lips, smiling as she silently cried in fear. "I missed you, dear. Us Moriartys should stick together."

He backed away from her and placed the gun on her table, smirking at how still she was, fearful like a little rabbit.

"I am not a Moriarty, Sir. You adopted me." Anna turned towards her adopted father "Get out." she pointed at the door to her flat. She glared at him, her changeable blue-green eyes flashing angrily.

He bowed mockingly with a smile. "Of course, dear." he walked past her and shut the door behind him. She heard the lock click, and she grimaced as she thought 'Of course he'd have a key to the door.'

When he was gone, she considered running again, but decided against it. She walked to her bedroom and found the billfold along with two bags of clothes and necessities packed.

* * *

The next day she took the bus from Aberporth to London, a tedious eight-hour journey that would have been good if she had pleasant thoughts to occupy her.

When she arrived, she sighed in relief as she hailed a cab. The address provided to her was for a small, but expensive hotel. When she arrived, she was shown up to one of the suites on the third floor that had a balcony.

Once she'd unpacked her things, she slept, tired after the long train ride. When she woke up the next morning, she decided to skip her adopted father's itinerary, and walk about London on her own. When she returned that night, she was happy to find her room empty of anything that would have given her suspicion.

Over the next two weeks, she had a marvelous time sight-seeing in London, enjoying the city like anyone would if they had never been somewhere larger than Liverpool. Occasionally she'd see a man follow her, as if he was shadowing her for someone. But on the last day of the second week, he vanished.

The next day, she decided to rest in her room to recuperate after all she had done over the previous two weeks. After taking a long soak in the washroom, Anna was surprised to find a young, red-haired man seated on her bed, looking out the open doors leading to her balcony. He looked at her, and smiled. "Hello, Annapeth. Your father sent me."

"Who are you?" she asked, pulling the bathrobe tighter around her to hide some of her exposed skin.

"Kinley. Samuel D Kinley. Would you like for me to attack you or would you rather I just drug you and get it over with?" he smirked as he continued to look at her.

"Your accent... it's American, is it not?" Anna asked, hoping to delay the inevitable a little longer as she walked over to her wardrobe.

"The lady is smart." he continued to grin when he challenged her "Where in America?"

"Based on your accent I would place you on the western coast. Northern California perhaps?"

"Good job. Even your father's not that good."

"Adopted father." she corrected him as she dressed herself, pulling a pair of blue denim trousers on. "How did you meet the likes of him anyhow?"

"The same way many of us do. We get noticed for particular... talents we have he might find useful." he shrugged as he watched her pull a green t-shirt over her head.

"Ah. And what is your talent?" she asked, turning to him, one eyebrow raised in question.

"I, along with my team, cause memory loss in some people by hypnosis. We make it look like an accident, or a mugging when in truth it is a coverup for one of your father's operations."

"What will you do to me?" she asked as she tied her trainers, looking at him, gauging his expression.

"Would you rather I stage a mugging or something more traumatic?" he asked, studying her face carefully.

"Anything you want except forcing yourself on me. I'd rather not have no memory and the possibility of a child that will have no known father." she smiled gratefully in relief as he nodded.

She stood up, and walked over to him. He looked at her with a confused look. "Why are you so keen on loosing your memories?"

"When you have my adopted father, you want to forget everything he's done to you."

"Fair enough. I'll get your coat. We'll take a cab to my place before we start anything. Would you like to walk out with me laughing like old friends?"

Anna nodded "Sure. I don't want you in trouble with anyone."

When they took the cab to his flat, they were quiet, one full of guilt for being forced to destroy such an innocent person, the other hoping that whatever happened could be fixed when this was finished.


	2. Chapter 2

When they arrived at the building, Anna was shown to a small room. Kinley had her sit in a chair in the center of the room, strapping her in like so many people he had before her. "I will be back, I need to prep my team." He said, looking at her sadly. "I'm sorry that I have to do this to you."

Anna smiled "I know that you will be wonderful, and thank you."

"For what?"

"For giving me a way out of my father's world."

* * *

When Kinley left the room, he frowned. When he entered the break-room, some of his workers noticed.

"What's wrong, boss?"

Kinley looked at the men "We are going to make Moriarty's daughter forget her past. And the kicker is that she wants it."

One of the men snorted "I would too if he was my dad."

"He adopted her. And she's given us the go-ahead to do the most traumatic non-lethal damage possible short of forcing ourselves on her. When she's been wiped, it will take some time to prep her for release in front of the drop spot."

One of the burlier men volunteered "I can make it look like a knife fight, and put her in a kevlar vest, and shoot her in the sternum. The kid can take care of the face."

"Not too much. She shouldn't have to loose her beauty as well as her memories. And remember, she has to survive."

The men nodded as they all went about their duties. Kinley turned to his desk, and wrote a note 'Dear Annapeth, I know that when you read this you will have no memories. Your name is Annapeth Williams, and you had lived in Aberporth to run away from your father. I found you in one of his houses like this, and hopefully the house I placed you in front of will take you in. Sincerely, Sam'

He placed it in an envelope, nodding to his team's lead hypnotist to begin. A few hours later, she slept, her memories locked away behind a door of the mind-palace she had constructed as a child.

* * *

It was late the next day that Kinley gave the go-ahead to his experts to prep her for being found at the drop site. She was hypnotized to keep her from waking during the process. After a few hours, they dropped her off, in a tattered pair of suit trousers and the remains of a cut-up collared shirt that had a kevlar vest underneath it. When she was awakened, she ran over to the door, and pounded "Let me in! Let me in!"

She turned around, and saw the car. She blacked out as the bullet hit her in the sternum, causing her to loose her breath.

* * *

An old, white haired man opened the door, and called up the stairs "John? I need your help down here."

Two other men, one taller than the other walked over "Was that a shot that I heard?" the shorter one asked.

"She was wearing Kevlar, thank god." the taller one said. "Let's get her to the sitting room. Mycroft, boil some water. Once I help John move her, I will get his medical supplies."

The three old men moved as fast as they could, the shortest ordering the other two to do various jobs as he cleaned and fixed her up. Once the doctor was finished, he turned to the two other men "She was very lucky. And she didn't loose a lot of blood, so she should be fine."

The other two sighed in relief. The one with white hair sat down with a grunt "Life is always interesting with you and your life-partner, brother dear."

"Just as interesting as when you were briefly having an affair with the Woman?" the curly grey-haired man asked as he walked over to his love. "Well done, John." he smiled as he kissed hid forehead.

"Thanks, Sherlock." John said with a grin as he sat on the couch with Sherlock, holding hands as the retired detective held him close.

The three men waited the entire night, John sitting in a chair next to the patient the entire time. By the morning, John had fallen asleep in his chair, and the brothers were watching the woman. "She can't be much older than thirty." Sherlock said as he studied her features.

"Yes, but who is she?" Mycroft asked, glaring at his brother.

"I think we are about to find out." Sherlock said as the woman began to move.

* * *

She began to wake up slowly, wincing as she felt all of her injuries. But for some reason she did not remember how she got them. When she opened her eyes she saw herself on a couch in a sitting room.

"It's nice to see you awake." She turned her head towards the sound of the voice, and saw a short, grey-haired man.

"Where am I?"

"You are at 221 Baker Street." the curly grey-haired man said as he put his hand on the shorter man's shoulder.

"Oh. Where is that?"

"London. Do you remember anything?" This came from a third man, who had white hair.

"No." she frowned trying to think. "All I remember is running up to a door, screaming to be let in, turning around to be shot."

"Nothing else at all?" The curly haired man asked.

"Oh, stop it! Both of you! We haven't even introduced ourselves. My name is John Watson. I'm a retired doctor. My life-partner here is Sherlock Holmes." he squeezed the hand of the man standing behind him. Pointing to the white-haired man he said "And that is my partner's brother, Mycroft. He was the British Government at one point in time."

"Minor government official, I assure you. And what is your name, my dear?" Mycroft asked.

She thought for a long time, trying to go past the locked doors in her mind "I can't remember. Someone has locked me out of my own Mind Palace!"

The three men looked at each other, then back at her. She glared at them "What? I'd rather say that than 'I use the method of Loci.' Boooring."

John laughed. "You know, you remind me of an equal mix of Sherlock and Mycroft. Equal mix of them when I first met them."

"Yes, let's get on with this. Mycroft, do you still have the letter you found on her?"

"Here it is. 'Dear Annapeth, I know that when you read this you will have no memories. Your name is Annapeth Williams, and you had lived in Aberporth to run away from your father. I found you in one of his houses like this, and hopefully the house I placed you in front of will take you in. Sincerely, Sam'" he folded the letter again.

"Annapeth. I've always hated that stupid name." She sat up, her eyes widening "I can remember. Thank you Samuel D Kinley of Northern California! Oh! Not good, very not good. You all need to get away from me fast! My adopted father is James Moriarty, and he knew that if you tried to awaken my memories you would succeed and he would kill one of you. Go! Get out of here!" She screamed, trying to stand up.

"Calm down, no one is going to get to us here." John said as he forced her to lay back down.

"You should have listened, John." a voice came from the doorway. Anna tried to stifle her scream when she saw her adopted father standing there. "Hello, Annapeth. Did you have a good Holiday?" he smiled as he saw her tears. "Oh, don't worry. I won't kill them. You forgot about the man who helped you forget and regain your memory, Kinley. Well, he just died in a most unfortunate accident." the sad face that he showed was quickly replaced by one of satisfaction. "I actually am here to reveal your parentage, little Annapeth. Your father had a dalliance with a certain domineering woman friend of mine. You have his hair, but her cheekbones and body-type." He smirked as he walked back out of the house "Good bye, little one."

* * *

Once he was gone, John turned to the brothers "What the Bloody Hell was that about?"

Anna cried as she whispered "I'm so sorry, Sam."

"I believe that Moriarty validated your theory, John." Sherlock said as his elder brother sat in silence. "Anna is half of Mycroft's blood, and half of Irene's. Brother, dear. You are a father."


End file.
